Thud

The 2,500 or so fans at the Rock who dealt with the awful road conditions in North Jersey were rewarded with the worst loss in the Bobby Gonzalez era. Let's hope Pirate Nation doesn't have to experience something like that for a long time. Seton Hall was out-shot, out-rebounded and out-hustled. Jerry Carino even reports that the post-game interviews left the press angry.

The significant edge on the boards and in the turnover department allowed the Golden Eagles to take an unfathomable 21 more shots than the Pirates were able to heave. That huge advantage turned a 36% shooting first half into an 18 point lead.

"Three of the last four teams we've played are better than us," Gonzalez said, sounding as if he was delivering a concession speech. "I think we just got outclassed a little bit tonight. ... We couldn't score, so I think that led to us getting kicked on the glass, by 15 offensive rebounds, not getting stops, and going from bad to worse.

"We got beat up a little bit, and we just weren't tough enough. We did not show enough toughness to respond to Marquette's defense the first 10 minutes of the game."

Brian Laing, who was the only Seton Hall player available for post game interviews, put it mildly,

"They jumped us and it was an uphill battle trying to get back in the game. We just didn't respond . . . I don't think it was our toughness. It was just tough trying to get back."

From our perspective, the Pirates looked worn down, immature or some combination of the two. There is a difference between a young yet inconsistent team and a young and immature one. Here's why, at least for one game, we saw too much of the latter:

- Gonzo sat Eugene Harvey so the coach could send a message to his point guard. Harvey played outside the system to score 14 points in his 31 minutes.

- If you DVR'd the game, watch Marquette's free throws taken with about 9 minutes remaining in the game. You will see Harvey and Jeremy Hazell standing, hands firmly placed on hips, as both shots were released.

Some guys just do what they've got to do. I'm not that type of player. I bounced back. I'm not dwelling on it. I went to the next play. If that's the way he wants to handle things. . . . I let my game speak for itself.

We have always been fans of Jamar and do not think he is a dirty player. However, he embarrassed the team with a cheap shot to the throat of an opponent. That's unacceptable for someone who goes to college for free in exchange for wearing the school uniform. The Plank believes he should be benched the next game.

Speaking of the next game, it comes Saturday in West Virginia. If Bobby Gonzalez's squad is tired, it now has time to rest. The Hall has only two games between today and February 23rd. If they want to play in the postseason, the team must use the off time wisely. Let's hope we don't see a repeat of last night for a long time, and that the team can move on quickly.

It is now a six game season. We still believe this team has the talent to earn a split down the stretch.